Germany does not seek survival

"Long live the great German Republic!"

"Three cheers for the birth of the Republic!"

Every street leading to the Capitol was lined with endless processions, men and women holding red banners, and cars passing by on the streets were emblazoned with red slogans.

Almost every household hung red flags. God knows where people got so many red cloths in such a short time.

Trucks carrying infantry and machine gunners came through the streets to engage those soldiers who still held out, but it seemed that most of the soldiers had joined the revolutionaries and were fighting alongside them.

There were only a few places where barricades remained, where fighting was still going on, but overall the revolutionaries had won a complete victory. It was clear that the old order had collapsed completely after the first shock.

At this time, Kautsky was in the official residence of the Central Committee of the Independent Party. He was meeting with two leaders of the Spartacus League, Liebknecht and Luxemburg. In the middle of the meeting, the three of them heard a huge noise coming from the street outside, and everyone looked at each other in confusion.

Immediately, people burst into the meeting room, including members of the Independent Party and the Spartacus League, and they all shouted at the top of their lungs: "Revolution! The emperor has fallen! Revolution!"

Kautsky was so stunned that his mind went blank. Liebknecht, however, remained calm and immediately patted Kautsky on the shoulder: "Sir, we must seize the opportunity as soon as possible. We must declare the establishment of a revolutionary government of the Republic before the Social Democrats do."

Ms. Luxembourg tied up her skirt and immediately started running outside.

Luxemburg rushed directly to the second-floor balcony of the Independence Party's official residence. Seeing the railing, she desperately climbed up: "This is the best place. I have to stand on the railing!"

Luxemburg climbed up, and seeing Liebknecht and Kautsky behind her, she said, "Please hold my legs while I speak."

Then, Luxemburg stood on the iron railing of the second-floor balcony, facing the revolutionary crowd on the street outside, and shouted:

"Workers! Soldiers! Peace-loving German people, the free German Soviet Republic has been established. We must fight for the establishment of a unified German Socialist Republic!"

"The day of freedom has come! The Hohenzollern dynasty is over. I proclaim the free German Soviet Republic, composed of all Germans... People, those of you who want to bring about world revolution, please raise your hands and take the oath!"

There was a landslide of applause in the streets. Just like that, Luxemburg announced the birth of the German Socialist Republic on her own initiative. The German Republic was born in such a completely informal and almost accidental form.

People shouted in unison to show their support and raised their hands together, like a forest pointing to the sky.

At the palace, Prince of Baden came in person to persuade William II to abdicate for the last time.

But outside there was an immediate thunderous roar of praise, "The Emperor has abdicated", "The Empire is over", "The monarchy is over", "Long live the Republic"... all kinds of voices, one wave higher than the other. Prince Baden's face turned pale, and he couldn't figure out what was happening.

General Plessen, Crown Prince Rupprecht, and Count Schulenburg, who were still in the palace, all questioned the Prince of Baden: "Old Prince, what on earth have you done?"

The Prince of Baden was shocked: "I just announced to the public that His Majesty the Emperor is considering abdicating... Where is His Royal Highness the Crown Prince and Lieutenant Colonel Manstein? Where are they?"

General Plessen was furious: "Manstein accompanied the Crown Prince to Potsdam, Prince. Your irresponsible remarks will lead to great bloodshed!"

Count Schulenburg then summoned William II, and together they shared the latest news. William II was stunned and walked back to the living room, bewildered, unable to believe the news he had just heard was true. For several minutes, no one could speak, as if the ground beneath their feet had collapsed.

"This is a coup d'état," said Count Schulenburg. "It is an act of violence to which Your Majesty must not submit. The Prussian throne belongs to Your Majesty. As Commander-in-Chief, Your Majesty's continued presence in the army is absolutely necessary. I pledge the army's continued loyalty to Your Majesty."

"I am the Emperor of Germany, I am the King of Prussia..."

William II tried his best to maintain his dignity and composure, but soon he lost his composure again: "Rebellion, gentlemen, this is a blatant and outrageous rebellion!"

Two hours ago, Manstein had left Berlin by car with Crown Prince Wilhelm, and the two had rushed to Potsdam to take over the rapid troops.

Count Schulenburg also told this information to William II, who immediately said: "Hurry up and let my son bring the troops back to kill all these rebels..."

Crown Prince Rupprecht quickly advised the Emperor: "No, no, no, Your Majesty, are you crazy? We are not in Potsdam. Revolutionaries are everywhere. If the Crown Prince's troops attack Berlin, we will all become hostages in the hands of the revolutionaries. If we anger the revolutionaries, we will all die!"

The situation outside was extremely dangerous. A dense crowd of people was moving, and among them were some large trucks that were struggling to move forward. They were loaded with soldiers and sailors, waving flags and laughing happily.

The young men in the trucks, dressed in drab uniforms or civilian clothes and carrying loaded rifles adorned with a small flag, would occasionally jump up from their seats and force the soldiers and officers to remove their collar patches and cap badges, or do it themselves if anyone refused.

Rupprecht's words somewhat hit the mark of William II's inner fear. His Majesty the Emperor finally softened and asked everyone to contact Potsdam and seek other means to resolve the crisis.

However, a bigger problem surfaced. As the situation on the streets outside got out of control, the telephone line from the palace to Potsdam had been cut off.

The surging crowds on the streets of Berlin have also begun to flow towards the Berlin City Palace.

Before Crown Prince Wilhelm could take the army in Potsdam to negotiate with the revolutionary government, the emperor might become a prisoner.

William II trotted to the balcony of the Berlin City Palace and looked over. In front of the roadblocks on the Palace Square, less than a hundred meters away, there were at least tens of thousands of people rushing towards the palace.

The imperial guards who were responsible for guarding the palace did nothing. They either dropped their weapons and fled or raised their hands in surrender. What's worse, many imperial guards also joined the ranks of revolutionaries.

"It's over..."

William II felt infinite despair: "My empire, the German Empire, is over!"

Chapter 163: Battle of Berlin

"Hurry up!"

Crown Prince Wilhelm was only wearing a shirt. It was windy and snowy outside Berlin, but he was sweating all over. You can imagine how nervous he was.

The rapid troops from Potsdam, many soldiers in gray uniforms were running forward quickly in the dark and foggy night, their bayonets flashing coldly in the moonlight of Berlin.

A convoy consisting of several A7V tanks and Ehrhart BAK armored vehicles rushed forward as the vanguard into Berlin. Under the command of Crown Prince Wilhelm, two regiments of the 1st Mobile Division of the German Emperor's Army arrived in the suburbs of Berlin from Potsdam one after another.

Crown Prince Wilhelm lowered his voice and said to General von Seeckt beside him, "What do you think? Do I look like Prince Shotgun?"

General Seeckt looked at the excited face of the Crown Prince and was still hesitant in his heart. Prince Shotgun refers to the founding emperor of the German Empire, William I. William I bloodily suppressed the 1848 Revolution and was nicknamed Prince Shotgun.

But can the Crown Prince really repeat William the Great's feat today?

General Seeckt made preparations for both scenarios. The Potsdam Rapid Force did not use all its forces to attack Berlin. He did not want to trigger a full-scale civil war, but he also felt that there were a large number of revolutionaries in Berlin, perhaps hundreds of thousands of people, and it would be difficult to suppress the imperial capital with only two divisions.

So General Seeckt left half of his troops to Manstein. Manstein led the German 2nd Mobile Division, had left Potsdam, and was heading towards East Prussia.

If the war to suppress Berlin failed, General Seeckt decided to take drastic measures, abandon Berlin and retreat to Prussia.

General Seeckt thought that if he were left with full authority, he would not even want to send troops to attack Berlin, because this move would be too dangerous for William II, who was still trapped in Berlin, and would also put the royalists in a very dangerous situation.

The plan to attack Berlin came from Manstein. It was he who persuaded the Crown Prince to send troops to Berlin. I wonder if there was any selfish motive hidden in this?

General Seeckt was a rational and overly calm general. He was also the person in charge of the military reconstruction plan left by Hindenburg and Ludendorff to the future of Germany. It was difficult for him not to consider these things in the worst direction.

Many people are looking forward to the death of His Majesty the Emperor.

This kind of death would be the best sacrifice for the German monarchy and could create a myth that would be passed down through the ages.

"Bang-bang! Boom-boom-boom-"

Gunshots rang out, followed by artillery fire. The rapid troops' plan to suppress the Berlin Revolution was to use heavy artillery to directly bombard the imperial capital. This approach was entirely Manstein's work.

Cruel, but also efficient.

The shells of 105mm howitzers blasted into the city of Berlin like meteors in the night. The battle started unexpectedly. Albert had just taken over the Berlin government. Many checkpoints set up by the new government around the city were attacked by the rapid troops at the same time. Flames rose and a huge fire burned.

Several trucks loaded with Social Democratic armed forces had just arrived when several machine guns crazily fired at the trucks. Many members of the union pickets and some gang members on the trucks were immediately killed or injured. The car windows were shattered and the driver's body fell from the truck.

The sound of gunfire quickly resounded throughout Berlin, and Ebert, who had just come to power, was horrified. This shrewd and cunning politician, facing the reckless attack of the rapid troops, revealed his weakness in military knowledge. For a moment, he was in a state of panic and no longer had the calm demeanor he had before.

The Chancellery was in chaos. Prince Baden, who had just handed over the Chancellor's power, burst into tears. The reactions of the others were no less frightened. They looked so panicked that it was really disappointing.

Many people did not understand the situation at first and thought that the gunshots were a rebellion launched by the Independent Party and the Spartacus League. It was not until the Berlin garrison controlled by the Social Democratic Party had begun a full-scale exchange of fire with the Potsdam Mobile Division that the Chancellery finally confirmed through reports from all sides that it was the royalists who were attacking!

Albert managed to regain his composure and quickly ordered Noske: "Immediately take your police force, fully armed, and use the Berlin Police Department to surround the palace. You must control William II and prevent him from getting in touch with the siege troops!"

At the Berlin City Palace, there were Emperor Wilhelm II, Crown Prince Rupprecht, General Plessen, Count Schulenburg...

The emperor and his royalist supporters were overjoyed when they heard the sound of gunfire as the German army attacked Berlin. William II finally made a public appearance and delivered a speech to the imperial guards guarding the palace, claiming that the German Empire had reached the most important moment of life and death and called on all the imperial guards to take up arms and make a final desperate effort to protect the emperor.

Most of the Imperial Guards had already lost their morale and had no combat effectiveness. Many of the Imperial Guards had already secretly colluded with the Social Democratic Party, the Independent Party or the Spartacus League and would no longer fight for William II.

However, there were still a small number of imperial guards who were encouraged by William II and actually wanted to contact the rapid troops outside the city.

As a result, a gunfight broke out outside the palace. A part of the imperial guards began to rush outwards and rushed towards the roadblocks piled up by the revolutionaries in the square. The workers surrounding the palace did not expect that the imperial guards would suddenly open fire on the crowd. They were caught off guard and suffered many casualties. Although many revolutionary workers carried guns, they often only had three or four bullets on them. No one thought that a civil war-like exchange of fire would really break out, and they were not prepared.

So at the first moment, the imperial guards in the palace rushed out and actually achieved considerable results, capturing several barricades in succession.

Bullets whizzed around the palace, and William II was really proud: "I will restore order in Berlin and restore the rule of the Hohenzollern dynasty!"

The whole of Berlin was in an uproar, and rumors spread throughout the city in an instant. In addition to the rumors, there were also various insults against William II for his sneak attack on the working masses.

Berlin, revolutionary Berlin, was already in turmoil. The new republic, less than twenty-four hours after its birth, was facing a major crisis of extinction. At this critical moment in history, Ebert of the Social Democratic Party was at a loss and failed to demonstrate his leadership ability in peacetime. This made the leadership of the German November Revolution fall into the hands of the left for the first time.

Kautsky advocated a cautious and slow approach in everything. He opposed the Independent Party and the Spartacus League from immediately confronting the monarchists, which seriously lost Kautsky points in front of the worker representatives of many revolutionary trade unions.

Only Liebknecht and Luxemburg took on the new responsibilities entrusted to them by the German people at this turning point in history.

With the support of the revolutionary trade unions, Liebknecht immediately announced the establishment of the Supreme Military Command of the German Socialist Republic in the official residence of the Central Party Headquarters of the Independent Party in Berlin, to unify the command of all armed forces under the control of the Independent Party and the Spartacus League.

Luxemburg was even more courageous. After learning the news of the royalist rebellion, she did not wait and rushed to the streets almost like flying.

"Defend Berlin! Defend the revolution! Defend the German Republic!"

Luxemburg, a woman who looked gentle and virtuous, suddenly wore a snow-white long dress, waving a red flag in her hand, and stood on the roof of a truck, waving the flag continuously. The surrounding workers and soldiers' representatives were all attracted by Luxemburg's amazing courage.

Luxemburg immediately called on the citizens of Berlin: "The fate of revolutionary Berlin should be decided by the revolutionary people of Berlin themselves. No one can interfere. What do you want? The crown of William II or the bayonets of the royalists? Those who do not want to succumb to the bayonets, follow me, follow me to fight. We must defend Berlin and defeat the rampant attacks of the royalists!"

Chapter 164 Goodbye, William II

The sailors who joined the revolutionary camp began to build barricades in the city of Berlin. The layers of sandbags looked like the Wall of Corpses in Flanders. The old soldiers who had suffered from four years of trench warfare swung their shovels frantically, and seemed to have dreamed of returning to the terrible trenches on the Western Front. People's faces were unhappy, and among the soldiers waving red flags, there were also some who retreated.

Luxemburg stood on a car roof, holding a red flag high, and ran through the streets: "Violence is the midwife of history - what is to be buried here is not the corpse of the working class, but the emperor!"

Everyone's eyes were focused on this Polish woman. Her snow-white dress and the red flag in her hand fluttered in the wind and snow. She looked so sacred, like a goddess.

When Luxemburg's car drove in front of the statue of the goddess Germania in the city center of Berlin, the towering goddess Germania held a sword in one hand and a crown in the other, with white clouds flying above her head. At the four corners were winged Valkyries wearing helmets and armor, holding swords and flutes. The scene was perfectly integrated with Luxemburg, who was running in the wind and snow without fear of bullets.

The revolutionary masses seemed to hear the sound of the winding Rhine River, the snow and ice on the Alps that had been frozen for thousands of years reflected the sun and the moon, and the blue Danube River, unhindered by the old times, always flowed eastward.

"The great trend of historical progress will not be stopped by a small group of royalists!"

When gunfire broke out throughout the city of Berlin, a cavalry unit of the Potsdam Rapid Force bypassed the numerous roadblocks set up by the workers and headed straight for the Berlin City Palace along an alley near Wilhelm Street.

The clatter of war hooves crushed the snow. This cavalry had only one mission, and that was to rescue William II at all costs. As long as they could get in touch with the emperor, the Battle of Berlin would have a 70 to 80 percent chance of winning.

More and more citizens, workers, soldiers, sailors, police, and even gang members took to the streets following the sound of gunfire and the call of the Spartacus League. In the turbulent chaos, the two major factions, the Social Democratic Party and the Independent Party, both showed their stupidity and sluggishness. As for other right-wing parties in Berlin, such as the Catholic Center Party, they originally lacked the ability to mobilize armed forces at the grassroots level, and now of course they were eager for the German army to enter Berlin as soon as possible.

Only the Spartacus League showed the inflammatory power to convince the German people at this critical moment. Liebknecht took over Kautsky's power in a very forceful manner within the central party headquarters of the Independent Party. He calmly commanded and deployed all the armed forces available at his disposal and blocked the Potsdam Rapid Force in the suburbs of Berlin in time.

Luxemburg on the streets aroused the revolutionary enthusiasm of the people with a different kind of amazing charm that the Germans had never seen before.

The Workers', Peasants' and Soldiers' Committee began distributing weapons in front of the armory, and then the armed masses rushed to every barricade in the city of Berlin like a tide. The whole city turned into a sea of ​​fire, and fierce gunfire was heard everywhere. From time to time, brave veterans used cluster grenades to blow up vehicles of the Potsdam Rapid Force.

The destroyed armored vehicles and tanks first burned into a ball of fire, and then a thick column of black and gray smoke rose up. The same thing happened everywhere in Berlin. The streets of Berlin were full of flames, and the scarlet flames reflected the white snow. The red flags were everywhere, intersecting with the black flags that had entered the city. There was the sound of gunfire, shouting, crying, and the sound of killing...

Smoke columns rose up everywhere, enveloping the sun and the moon. The cavalry that was rushing towards the palace was almost about to rush into the square, but was blocked by sailors at the alley. After a fierce and short exchange of fire, this small cavalry unit was quickly repelled.

Albert arrived late. After nearly an hour of fighting in Berlin, Albert slowly realized that he had to step forward and take control of the troops, otherwise the SPD would lose power regardless of victory or defeat. Albert hurried to gather the troops, but because of the turbulent situation in the city, the SPD could only gather a few hundred police officers and gang members.

"The historical mission of the Social Democratic Party is to prevent a full-scale civil war in Germany. Our historical mission is to preserve as much national vitality as possible for the German nation after the war!"

Albert finally mustered up the courage to go out onto the street. He shouted at the top of his lungs, "Civil war must be avoided! Everyone, follow me to the palace now. We must control the emperor and not let him fall into the hands of the rebels—whether they be left-wing or right-wing!"

The Social Democratic Party began to march towards the Berlin City Palace. Luxemburg, with the masses she had mobilized, rushed to the suburbs of Berlin to resist the rapid troops. Inside the official residence of the Central Party Headquarters of the Independent Party, Liebknecht calmly glanced at the city map and immediately told Kautsky:

"Karl, my old friend, we have no choice now. The most important thing is to control William II. What do you think? I think it is necessary to send a force immediately to capture William II and bring him to the Central Party Headquarters."

Times have changed. During the war, Liebknecht was arrested by William II and imprisoned for four years. Now it is Liebknecht's turn to put the emperor in prison.

Kautsky was sweating profusely. The situation was evolving so rapidly! Yesterday, Kautsky was still obsessed with the idea of ​​a constitutional monarchy. Had the German Revolution already reached the point of regicide?

"I...I...maybe I should take a long-term view at this point...be more cautious..."

Liebknecht was particularly disappointed when he saw that Kautsky was so nervous that he could not speak. He said: "You are not worthy of the title of Pope of Marxism. An unarmed Pope is less useful than a mendicant!"

Liebknecht shook off Kautsky and assembled a group of sailors and workers' Red Guards. In front of the gate of the Central Party Headquarters of the Independent Party, hundreds of sailors and workers carried rifles on their shoulders and their bayonets were shining.

Liebknecht found a command saber from somewhere and raised it high: "Gentlemen, people of Berlin! For four years, all the emperor has done is to send our fathers, brothers, and sons into the meat grinder for his own selfish desires and ambitions. Millions of people have died because of him. And now, at the end of the war, the emperor is selling out Germany's interests in exchange for his own power. What is the point of keeping a monarch like this?"

"What kind of life have we, the people, led in the past four years? How many have suffered from hunger and cold, starving to death in the streets? How many have toiled in factories for more than ten hours straight, dying in front of machines? The emperor betrayed the German people, and the army also betrayed the German people. Now, comrades, let us go to the palace together. We must drag the emperor out. Let us take action. In order for the German people to live a truly happy and free life in the future, we must use the tyrant's blood to water the flowers of freedom of the Republic!"

Amid the roar of gunfire and the red light of flames that lit up the sky of Berlin, the team shot towards the palace like an arrow.

In the square of Berlin City Palace, the counterattack launched by the Imperial Guards actually broke through the barricades. William II, Crown Prince Rupprecht, General Plessen, Count Schulenburg...

There were also many other prominent court figures who had already gotten into their cars. Under the protection of the Imperial Guards, this convoy of five or six black luxury cars was rushing out of Berlin through the gaps between the barricades.

What would have happened if William II had really escaped from Berlin?

No one could have guessed it!

William II leaned out of the car window, waving his hands in the air, his mouth wide open, shouting hysterically: "Fire! Fire! Eliminate all the rebels! Kill all the traitors!"

William II's face was ferocious. When he looked at the people of Berlin, all that was left in their eyes was hatred. Naturally, the people of Berlin looked at the emperor with only hatred in their eyes.

The two teams led by Liebknecht and Ebert arrived at the Imperial Palace Square almost at the same time. The crowds were surging and collided with each other. In an instant, everyone was crowded together. The situation was extremely chaotic. The Imperial Guards, the Social Democratic Party, and the Spartacus League shot at each other, waved bayonets at each other, blood spurted, and gunfire was dripping.

In the chaos, someone started firing a machine gun, and then the fighting escalated immediately. Machine guns, grenades, and some people pulled small-caliber artillery over, lowered the muzzle, and fired directly.

The square in front of the Berlin City Palace turned into a purgatory of blood and fire in an instant. In the fierce battle, a large number of bullets finally hit the black luxury car. The bullets instantly shattered the car window glass and then penetrated the entire car. After a while, flames broke out in the car, and then it exploded with a bang.

Albert's eyes were bloodshot. In this situation, he didn't need to think too much and immediately realized who the person sitting in the car might be!